The Long Thorny Road to Justice
It was a long eventful night as the US National Police began firing tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets at the peaceful crowds. I spent the whole night covering the unfolding events in the vicinity of the White House as thousands of people protested against racial injustice and police brutality in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death. Despite being extremely exhausted, I left early in the morning along with my colleague William, the cameraman. Our first destination was Atlanta, the capital of the state of Georgia, which was under night curfew following days of riots and lootings. As the curfew time neared, the police demanded that the demonstrators leave. They did not budge; they believe peaceful protest is their right. A few minutes later, the police started to fire tear gas and began arresting many of the protesters. The majority of the protesters in Atlanta were young people who believe racial injustice is still prevalent in the birthplace of Martin Luther King, Jr. During the few days we spent there, we noticed differences in the protests. Smaller numbers of activists took to the streets during the day to shed light on their many grievances: from high rates of unemployment due to the coronavirus to arbitrary verdicts against Black Americans. However, the common denominator among all these protests was the killing of George Floyd.
The Long Thorny Road to Justice Biesan Abu-Kwaik | Al Jazeera Correspondent, Washington DC
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